


i think i love you

by zhuzhubi



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Autistic Spencer Reid, Awkward Spencer Reid, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, lots of fluff lmao
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:56:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27718513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zhuzhubi/pseuds/zhuzhubi
Summary: 5 times spencer and reader don’t realize they’re in love, plus 1 time they do
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 138
Collections: Math, [That's A Penis meme] ...or is it?





	i think i love you

**Author's Note:**

> my tumblr is @zhuzhubii :)

_one_

You’re just getting in to work on Monday morning and you already want to go back home. The team just got back in from a two-week long case somewhere around two in the morning, which means you’re running on less than five hours of sleep - not only that, but you know there are piles and piles of back-logged consults waiting for you at your desk after being away for so long.

You plot down in your chair and let your bag fall to the floor in a heap, too exhausted to worry about neatness as you ready yourself to face the seemingly-endless number of _possibly-serial-definitely-unsolved_ case files waiting for you. You let your eyes slip closed for just a moment and can’t seem to make yourself open them again - oh how you wish you were at home in your nice warm bed, nestled under the covers and getting some well-deserved rest -

“(y/n),” a familiar voice echoes in your ears as your head dips forward, “(y/n)!”

“Eugh!” you exclaim - you jolt to attention, spinning around in your chair as your search wildly for the source of the voice, mumbling “I’m up, I’m up!” as you shake the sleep from your eyes.

There’s a soft chuckle to your left and then Spencer appears in your field of vision, trying and failing to bite back an amused grin as he gives you a little wave. “Spencer!” you chide playfully, “You scared me!”

His shoulders shake as he tries to hold back his laughter, stuffing his hands in his pockets and averting his eyes as you feign annoyance. He glances down at you and raises his eyebrows and that’s when you lose it - you don’t know what about nearly falling asleep at work is so funny, but suddenly you can’t seem to stop laughing. It sets Spencer off too and then you’re both laughing, doubling over and clutching at your bellies, completely oblivious to the funny looks the other agents are sending the two of you as they trickle in for work.

When your laughter finally starts to die down, Spencer stutters, “I, um…I got a coffee for you?”

You just blink at him for a moment, looking him over and finding him suspiciously missing said coffee. You’re just about to ask him what he means when he lets his eyes fall down to your desk, rocking on his heels a little as he raises a tentative hand to point towards -

“Oh!” you exclaim, finally noticing the paper coffee cup he must’ve placed on your desk at some point. You wrap your hands around the cardboard sleeve and sigh when you feel the warmth under your palms - when you raise the cup to your lips and take a sip you could swear it’s the best coffee you’ve ever had, even though it’s the exact same drink you usually order. Wait a second, you think, how did he…?

“Spencer,” you chuckle, “How did you know my coffee order?”

“W-well I, um…,” he sputters, “You, um - I must’ve overheard you mention it sometime and, well, you know how my memory is…”

You peer up at him as you take another sip and suddenly today doesn’t feel so horrible anymore. “Thank you,” you smile, “I really needed it this morning.”

He blushes and just stands there for a moment, then gives you another little wave and rushes off - you watch as he stumbles over to his own desk and pulls his messenger bag off, then gently sets it down before finally settling into his chair. Your cheeks feel hot for some reason, but you put it down to the coffee - it’s just the steam warming your face, right?

…

_two_

The jet is quiet as Spencer flips through his book, turning the pages at what he considers a leisurely pace as he winds down from the adrenaline of being on a case. He rubs his eyes and bites back a yawn, looking around and noticing that he’s the only one still awake, then shaking his head in his stubbornness to stay up until the end of his book. But his eyes keep fluttering closed and his head keeps nodding forward - he sets the book aside for a moment and resolves to take a lap around the plane in hopes of waking himself up a little.

Spencer pushes himself to his feet and stretches his arms above his head, sighing as his back pops and then rubbing the tension out of his neck. I really ought to spend less time hunched over, he thinks as he makes his way down the aisle, subconsciously heading toward the drinks station and starting to make himself a coffee before he can think twice about it. He’s just stirring the sugar in when something catches his attention - he instinctively looks up, but can’t quite pinpoint what it was. But then he catches a slight twitch of movement out of the corner of his eye and -

There you are on the tiny couch, curled up on your side and stirring a little in your sleep as the plane glides along. He just stands there watching you for a moment, feeling a little creepy but still unable to tear his eyes away when -

 _Oh,_ he thinks, _you’re shivering._ And then he’s unbuttoning his cardigan and laying it over your shoulders, he’s tucking it around your sides with gentle hands before a second thought even begins to cross his mind. You sigh and mumble something incomprehensible in your sleep, nestling into his sweater before you resettle.

Spencer gives a little hum of satisfaction and then goes back to his coffee, pouring in a little extra sugar before taking it back to his seat and re-opening his book. And when Morgan, distinctly more awake than Spencer assumed, glances between you two with a raised brow? Well, neither of you notice at all.

…

_three_

You’ve noticed that Spencer’s acting a little off today - you can’t pinpoint exactly what it is, but he’s much less talkative than normal and he keeps flinching and fingering over his ears. He hasn’t said anything about it, but then again he never does - he’s the type of person who bottles things up until they have nowhere to go, just lets them build and build and build until they refuse to be held back any longer.

But you’re on a case and there isn’t much time to dwell on it right now - three women are dead, and all of you know there will be a fourth ( _and fifth and sixth and seventh_ ) if you can’t figure out who the perpetrator is. So you don’t say anything about Spencer’s off-ness, instead resolving to keep an eye on him until… well, until he starts feeling better, you guess.

And you were really hoping that would happen (for his sake, not yours), but unfortunately he’s only been getting worse - you’ve watched him grow increasingly tense and agitated as the hours stretch on, and you find yourself caught between wanting to help him and knowing that if you come on too strong he won’t accept your help.

In the end, his distress makes the choice for you - the whole team is crammed into the tiny conference room at the local PD, rapidly firing ideas back and forth as Garcia nails clack on her computer keys over the phone. Spencer’s hands creep up to his ears and his lips pull into a frown, he starts bouncing on his toes and scratching at his jaw, his breathing picking up as he watches the cacophony of conversation bounce around the room.

Without a second thought you start to usher him out into the hall - the room goes quiet and suddenly everyone’s eyes are on the two of you, brows raising in confusion and you sheepishly look back at them.

“(y/l/n),” Hotch’s stern voice breaks the silence, “Is something wrong?”

“I, um -,” You cut yourself of when Spencer lets out a tiny whimper beside you, so soft you’re sure nobody else heard, and clenches his eyes shut. “I just,” you start again, softer this time, “I just need Reid to, um, there’s this thing I need to do a-and uhhh…he needs to come with me?”

And then Hotch actually looks at Spencer and his sternness fades a little. “Alright,” he nods, “Let me know when you’re done.”

He turns back to the team without another word and you’re quick to lead Spencer the rest of the way out of the room, hurrying him through the busy police station and ducking into the first empty office you come across. He lets out a tiny sigh of relief once all the noise is gone - you don’t try to ask him anything at first, you just give him the space to resettle his senses and calm down.

When he finally blinks his eyes back open and lets his hands fall away from his ears, you just smile at him and ask, “Better?”

He nods and hums, “Mmhm. Better. Thanks,” and though the syllables are short and curt, you hear the meaning behind every word.

…

_four_

You’re shopping for knick-knacks one day when you come across them - there on the shelf is a pack of six patterned socks, all with funny faces and bright colors. They remind you of Spencer and you find yourself picking them up and walking toward the register before you can think better of it - _it’s not too weird to buy a random gift for one of your coworkers, is it?_ you think, _And anyway Spencer’s my friend outside of work, so really this counts as a gift between friends and people give their friends gifts all the time -_

You pay for the socks and tuck them away inside your bag to bring to work on Monday - you contemplate wrapping them for a brief moment before nixing the idea. _It’s not a present, really,_ you tell yourself, _I just saw them and thought he might like them. I’m just being nice, that’s all._

You get into work before Spencer and decide to leave them on his desk - it’ll be a nice surprise for a Monday morning. And he smiles so wide when he sees them that it erases every moment of doubt - you like to see your friends happy, that’s all. Nevermind that Spencer knew immediately exactly who bought them, that his head snapped over to where you were sitting innocently at your desk and twiddling your thumbs. You definitely weren’t anxiously anticipating his arrival and subsequent reaction, not at all!

And if Rossi and Emily share a _look_ behind your back? Suffice to say you don’t notice them.

…

_five_

You’re digging through your go-bag as the team heads to the hotel for the night, mumbling to yourself and growing increasingly distressed as you continue on with your search. You can’t find your hand lotion and maybe it shouldn’t be such a big deal, but it’s winter and your hands get super dry in the winter which is what the lotion is for -

A travel-sized bottle of the exact brand you use appears in front of you - you snatch it up and let out a shaky exhale, so relieved to have it in your grasp that you don’t even question where it came from. You flick open the tiny bottle and squeeze some out onto the back of your hand - it’s only when you’re half-way through spreading it around that it finally hits you. Lotion doesn’t just appear out of nowhere like that - it must’ve come from somewhere, but where…?

Spencer shifts in his seat beside you, biting his lip and looking down at his hands as the twist together in his lap. He chances a glance at you out of the corner of his eye at the same moment that you look over - his face lights up in a blush and that’s when you realize.

“Spencer, did you -” you cut yourself off and clear your throat, heat filling your own cheeks as you restart, “Did you buy this for me?”

“W-well,” he sputters, “You were talking about how your hands get dry in the winter, and how that brand of lotion is your favorite. And then I started thinking about how easy it is to lose things because we travel all the time, and I just thought it might be nice for you to have a back-up just in case you lost your bottle because I wouldn’t want you to be uncomfortable and it’s certainly uncomfortable to have dry hands, especially -”

“Spencer,” you cut him off with a smile, “Thank you. That was really thoughtful of you, I appreciate it.”

“Y-you’re welcome!” he stutters.

And when JJ glances at the two of you in the rearview mirror, a knowing grin pulling at her lips, neither of you is any the wiser.

…

_plus one_

It hits you all of the sudden one night when you’re over at his place, relaxing on the couch and watching Star Trek with Spencer (or rather, listening to his excited rambling about Star Trek and its elaborate universe). 

“I think I’m in love with you,” you blurt out, and somehow it’s not embarrassing at all. It feels like you were meant to say it, that you really should have said it sooner because hasn’t it been true from the start?

Spencer blinks at you for a second, a blush painting his cheeks as his mouth falls open a little. “I think…I think I am too. In love with you, that is. I think I’m in love with you.”

And then he leans in to kiss you, and it’s like you’ve been together all along.


End file.
